Two teenage boys, aged 13 and 16, have been sentenced to youth detention for planning and carrying out a stabbing attack on a 12-year-old girl in Barry Island, Vale of Glamorgan. The attack occurred on November 23, 2024, at the Harbour Road car park, where the girl was choked, repeatedly stabbed, and kicked in the face, leaving her unconscious.
The boys used Snapchat to discuss and plan the attack, with messages revealing their intentions to source knives, lure the girl to Barry Island, and carry out the assault. The 13-year-old asked his co-defendant to "wear gloves" and discussed cleaning the knives afterward. The boys also used Snapchat to arrange a meeting with the girl, who knew them, and spent the day at Barry Island amusements before the attack.
The victim spent three days at the University Hospital of Wales in Cardiff, undergoing three operations. She has since been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and says she thinks about the attack "every day". In a statement read to the court, she described seeing her scars every day and struggling to avoid thoughts of the incident.
Judge Tracey Lloyd-Clark sentenced the 13-year-old to two years and 173 days in youth detention and the 16-year-old to three years and 260 days. Both boys were given restraining orders preventing them from contacting their victim indefinitely. The judge noted that both boys had initially blamed each other for the stabbing, but later pleaded guilty.
The 13-year-old's defense team highlighted his traumatic experiences from a young age and limited capacity for reasoning and comprehension. Educational psychiatric assessments are underway. The 16-year-old's defense team noted that he had never committed an offense before and had shown remorse for his actions.
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